5 Ways to Harness Your Sixth Sense
Intuition defined as “into the soul” is a natural gift we are all born with. It’s an inner guide, gut feeling, or sixth sense. My personal belief is that we all have an intuition, yet some of us may be more sensitive to it than others. It interacts with us on a daily basis with every experience from making a major life decision to deciding what product is better to purchase.
Have you ever walked into a bookstore and felt drawn to a book for no reason? You check it out and realize it’s exactly the type of book you need at this moment in your life. Or met someone and instantly felt a connection but couldn’t figure out why? This is your intuition guiding you to people, places, and experiences meant for your soul’s growth and expansion.
Intuition also helps us avoid specific situations, people, and decisions. For example, going on a date for the first time and getting a bad vibe about the person. That “bad vibe” is you sensing that person’s energy. Perhaps later you find out why you didn’t get the greatest feeling about the person.
We receive good and bad vibes all day in our work environments, personal relationships, family, health matters, and more. Intuitive impressions help us with major life decisions and also prepare and inform of us things to come or things that have passed.
So how can you begin to harness your intuition? The following are five suggested tips:
- Energy sensing
I attended a one-day workshop with James Van Praagh in New Jersey and he had us practice sensing each other’s energy centers or chakras with our hands. It was a really powerful way to intuitively sense information about someone spiritually, mentally and emotionally.
Energy sensing is a simple technique and one you can practice with yourself or with another person. Get into a calm meditative state. When you feel more relaxed, bring your awareness to your heart center. Notice how your heart feels. Pay attention to any feelings, colors, blockages that may arise. You can practice this with other chakra centers as well such as the throat, third eye or solar plexus.
Becoming more aware of energy allows you to be sensitive and open to new information.
Watch Spirit Talk: Auras and Energy{.inline-media .inline-video} with James Van Praagh to be guided through an energy-sensing exercise.
- Meditation
Meditation is a tried and true technique to tap into your inner wisdom and communicate with your higher self or a spirit guide. It not only helps with stress relief but also opens the door to your intuition. A simple meditation technique is concentrating on your breath for 5 minutes or repeating a mantra such as “Om Shanti,” which means inner peace in your mind.
If you lack focus and concentration while being still, I suggest doing a walking meditation like walking in the park and taking in the sounds and smells of the season. You can also create, write, or do anything that brings peace and stillness to your mind.
- Signs & Symbols
Begin to notice repeating signs, symbols, or numbers in your environment. This may be a message from the universe, spirit guide, or your intuition guiding you or showing you something. For the longest time, I saw the numbers 1212 everywhere and took that as a sign of transformation and higher knowledge. You can interpret the sign as what you feel it may mean. Also notice how you feel or what you are thinking about when you see the sign as a potential way to interpret it.
- Quiet Time & Checking In
Set aside time each day for 10-15 minutes to turn off all electronics, check out from life, and tune into yourself. During this time, notice how you feel emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. You can pose a question to yourself about a particular concern such as “Is this career transition right for me?” Notice what feelings, emotions, or impressions arise. Write down what you experienced and practice this throughout the week at the end of your day.
- Dreams
In our dream state we are open and highly receptive to connecting with our intuition. Start to keep a dream journal or take notes in your phone of the dreams you have. Pay attention to recuring themes, symbols, or feelings you experience in them.
Also, feel free to concentrate on a concern or question at night before you go to bed. The next morning write down what you received if anything. Be patient as this exercise doesn’t always work immediately. You may also want to get some crystals for dreaming to help enhance your connection. Place them under your pillow at night before you fall asleep.
Practice each tip and see what resonates with you. You may also develop your own practices and methods that work for you with each. Build, expand, and let your intuition guide you.
About the Author
Lucid Dreams: Can Dreaming Be a Spiritual Practice?
Lucid dreams are those in which people are aware that they are dreaming while still asleep. This ability not only facilitates the conscious manipulation of the dream but also serves as a valuable tool for personal and spiritual growth. In this article, we explore what lucid dreams are, how to induce them, and their potential for spiritual transformation.
Table of Contents
- What Are Lucid Dreams?
- 5 Techniques to Induce Lucid Dreams
- What Is the Purpose of Having Lucid Dreams?
- Lucid Nightmares: How to Manage and Transform Them
- Dreaming as a Spiritual Tool
What Are Lucid Dreams?
Lucid dreams are those in which the dreamer is aware that they are dreaming and can, in many cases, control the dream. This phenomenon can occur spontaneously or through the use of specific techniques that enhance lucidity. Lucid dreamers can interact with the dream environment, make conscious decisions, and explore their scenarios with full awareness.
This capacity of control and awareness in the dream has multiple applications, from problem-solving and practicing skills to exploring deeper aspects of the self. Lucid dreams also offer a path to confront and transform recurring nightmares, turning them into less disturbing and more enriching experiences. The practice of lucid dreaming can strengthen the connection between the conscious mind and the subconscious, facilitating greater self-understanding and personal growth.
In the third season of Mystery Teachings, available on Gaia, Theresa Bullard explores how dreams can serve as a spiritual tool. She provides methods and practices to increase lucidity and use sleep time as an opportunity for self-exploration and spiritual development.
5 Techniques to Induce Lucid Dreams
Inducing lucid dreams can be achieved by implementing habits and techniques that prepare the mind to recognize the dream state. This process involves a combination of daytime and nighttime practices that increase awareness and dream memory. It is essential to maintain a clear and consistent intention to experience lucid dreams, as repeating this intention reinforces the mind’s ability to detect the dream state.
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Keep a dream journal
Keeping a dream journal is a fundamental tool for inducing lucid dreams. By writing down your dreams every morning, you improve your dream memory and recognize recurring patterns. This habit strengthens your ability to remember dreams and increases the likelihood of identifying that you are dreaming. Additionally, regularly reviewing your dream journal helps you become familiar with the common themes and symbols in your dreams, making it easier to recognize these elements while you are dreaming.
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Perform reality checks
Reality checks involve performing small experiments during the day to verify if you are dreaming. For example, you can look at your hands and count your fingers, or try to push a finger through the palm of your other hand. If you are dreaming, these actions will produce unusual results. Practicing these reality checks habitually trains your mind to question the nature of reality, increasing the likelihood that you will do the same during a dream, which will allow you to achieve lucidity.
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Practice the MILD technique (Memorized Induction of Lucid Dreams)
The MILD technique involves repeating a phrase or affirmation before sleeping, such as “Tonight, I will realize that I am dreaming.” This method relies on intention and prospective memory to induce lucidity. By focusing on your desire to have a lucid dream as you fall asleep, you program your mind to remember this desire. This constant practice reinforces your ability to become aware in the dream and increase the frequency of your lucid dreams.
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Use the WBTB technique (Wake Back To Bed)
The WBTB technique involves waking up after about five or six hours of sleep, staying awake for 20–30 minutes, and then going back to sleep with the intention of having a lucid dream. This method takes advantage of the fact that REM dreams, where lucid dreams occur, are more frequent and longer in the second half of the night. Being awake briefly disrupts your sleep cycle, increasing your mental alertness as you fall back asleep, which facilitates lucidity.
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Meditate before sleeping
Meditating before sleeping is an effective practice for inducing lucid dreams. Meditation helps calm the mind and reduce stress, creating a mental state conducive to lucidity. Practicing mindfulness and concentration before sleeping improves your ability to maintain awareness while you sleep. Additionally, meditation can help you establish a clear intention to have a lucid dream, facilitating the conscious transition into the dream state.
What Is the Purpose of Having Lucid Dreams?
Having lucid dreams is not only a fascinating experience, but it also offers multiple practical and spiritual benefits. Lucid dreamers can use this state to explore and resolve personal problems, practice skills, and experience a deeper connection with their subconscious. Lucid dreams are a powerful tool for personal growth, enabling a profound exploration of the mind and spirit.
- Overcoming fears: Lucid dreams allow you to face and overcome phobias and anxieties in a safe and controlled environment. This can lead to a reduction of fear in everyday life.
- Problem solving: Using lucid dreams to explore creative solutions to problems can result in unique ideas. The subconscious mind can offer new and valuable perspectives.
- Skill practice: Athletes and musicians, among others, can practice and perfect skills within lucid dreams. This can improve performance in waking life through mental rehearsal.
- Self-knowledge: Lucid dreams facilitate introspection and self-awareness. By interacting with the subconscious, dreamers can discover desires and internal conflicts.
- Spiritual exploration: Lucid dreams can serve as a platform for spiritual and meditative experiences. Dreamers can explore spiritual dimensions and gain a deeper understanding of their inner selves.
Lucid Nightmares: How to Manage and Transform Them
Lucid nightmares are those in which the dreamer is aware of being in a dream but is trapped in a negative experience. The advantage of lucidity is that the dreamer has the capacity to transform the nightmare into a positive experience. To handle a lucid nightmare, it is crucial to first remember that the environment is not real and that the dreamer has control.
An effective technique is to confront and dialogue with the frightening elements of the nightmare. Asking them why they are there or what they want to communicate can deactivate their negativity. This not only transforms the nightmare, but it can also provide information about the fears and internal conflicts that generate it.
Another strategy is to deliberately change the dream environment. By remembering that you are in a dream, the dreamer can try to modify the scene, create protective objects, or fly away from danger. These actions reinforce the sense of control and can turn the experience into something enriching and empowering.
Dreaming as a Spiritual Tool
Dreaming can become a profound spiritual practice. Dreams, especially lucid dreams, allow access to levels of consciousness that are normally outside of our reach. This access can facilitate encounters with spiritual guides, the resolution of internal conflicts, and the integration of forgotten or repressed aspects of our personality.
Lucid dreams can also be a gateway to the exploration of other planes of existence and realities beyond the physical world. Many spiritual practitioners often use lucid dreams for astral travel, communicating with spiritual entities, and receiving teachings directly in the dream state. This exploration not only enriches spiritual life but also provides a greater understanding of life’s purpose and the universe.
Moreover, dreams can serve as a mirror of the individual’s internal state, reflecting both spiritual progress and the areas that need attention. Interpreting and working with dreams can be a powerful way of self-discovery and spiritual growth. Through the conscious practice of lucid dreaming, it is possible to access a deep inner wisdom and transform daily life with the teachings received during sleep.
